grades, made many friends, and played sports. He writes of "the inspections and the beatings" and recalls that "nuns used to watch us take showers." Students followed a strict schedule, particularly on weekdays, from rising at 6:45 a.m. to their 9:00 p.m. bedtime, with only 45 minutes of free play allocated on Mondays and Wednesdays, and two hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, plus some time in the evening during 'rest' period in the dormitories. Cadets were not permitted to keep items such as food, money, or comic books, nor make or receive telephone calls, except in case of emergency. After the new building was completed in the late 1940s, cadets were housed in dormitories, each of which contained approximately fifty beds, set in three rows, each bed separated from the next by a folding metal chair approximately 18 inches wide. There were no curtains on the windows and walls were bereft of any decoration, such as pictures or posters. Foreign students In 1951, students from Latin America, predominantly Mexico, began to enroll at Linton Hall. Over the years, the number of foreign students increased, until foreign students constituted a sizeable portion of the student body. This opportunity for cultural exchange provided an added dimension to the program. Boards The Linton Hall Board of Visitors was founded in 1974 in order to assist the administration in forming policies concerning future growth, development, finances, public relations, and other areas of concern. The Board of Visitors was dissolved in 1991, giving way to the advisory board. In the 1975–1976 school year, a five-day resident program was offered to make the boarding facility available to more students. In addition to maintaining accreditation by the Virginia State Board of Education and membership in the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA), Linton Hall became a member of the Virginia Association of Independent Schools (VAIS) in 1977. Summer activities For thirty-nine years Linton Hall operated a summer camp program which provided a variety of activities as well as summer classes. Beginning in 1990, Linton Hall focused on a day camp which served many of the children from the Extended Day Program. The summer camp of 1993 began a special inclusion of underprivileged children from the local community. The camp under the sponsorship of the Benedictine Sisters of Virginia ended in the summer of 1996. Since that time the facilities and grounds have been rented to other sports